1Extremely Raw Design of Moore Studio

Omar Gandhi Architect , a design firm based in Nova Scotia, have designed a residence called Moore Studio.

This new 1500 square home located in Hubbard’s, Nova Scotia..

Moore Studio by Omar Gandhi Architect:

Peg and Garth Moore approached me after reading about a collaboration I had forged with a contractor down in the south shore of Nova Scotia named Deborah Herman-Spartinelli in the Globe and Mail – a national newspaper. They live in Halifax, Nova Scotia and contacted me to discuss the possibility of designing their new home.

The project is intended to be a vehicle for continuing youthful dreams.

The clients are new empty-nesters with two dogs and a passion for the arts. Both had been full time artists before finding other work to support their families. The new home would be built on a recently purchased piece of land amidst a dense forest in Hubbard’s, Nova Scotia. Hubbards is approx. 45 minutes south of Halifax. The new 1500 sq.ft house was to be designed to be extremely raw, open spaces and lots of natural daylight. The aim of the new home would be to provide a platform for living in a quiet setting, free of the stress of the city and an environment for their dogs and artistic ambitions.

The project is based on the idea metamorphosis. The baseline form of the house began as a simple and elegant gable with a 12:12 roof pitch. The end form of the building was the sum of the original gable plus the space and lighting requirements of the clients. See the attached models for a better understanding. The product of this distortion is unique as a result of landscape, program, clients requirements and the simplicity of the gable – a vernacular form of Nova Scotia.

The palette of the designed house is exposed weather soft wood, aluminum roofing and concrete floors. The interior wall, floor and ceiling would be clad in plywood and OSB and a minimal amount of drywall. The ground floor includes a double height kitchen and dining space, a living room, 2 bedroom and bathrooms. The upper floor are separate studios for Peg and Garth which look down upon the upon the kitchen from above. Materials such as caged industrial fixtures, salvaged steel grating (guard) and natural construction materials (plywood) flank the interior space. A continuous strip of windows stretch from the one end of the house to the other allowing for a long view of the property. The upper floor is lit by an end to end clerestory window. The upper floor also opens up to the rear bank as the house is built on the side of a natural hill.

An adjacent steel shipping container will be used as a shed.

The house is being built by a young and highly skilled local contractor named Mike Burns.